Athlete of the week

Published 1:00 am, Thursday, November 5, 2009

The senior quarterback/safety did plenty to ensure the Sabres made their first appearance in a Section II Class B Super Bowl on Friday night against Cohoes.

Gallo rushed the ball 30 times for a season-high 300 yards and four touchdowns to propel Schalmont past Cohoes 55-14.

"We had to win to get where we wanted to be — playing in the Super Bowl," Gallo said.

Gallo pushed his rushing total up to 1,952 yards — already the 10th best single-season total in Section II history — and added a 41-yard touchdown pass to Alberto Beltran in the first quarter to help the Sabres achieve their highest point total of the season.

As if he already didn't do enough on offense, Gallo also added 20 tackles against Cohoes to push his season total to an incredible 177 tackles. The senior also has a team-high five interceptions.

Gallo will look to lead Schalmont to its eighth straight victory, and avenge a 42-29 loss to Lansingburgh in Week 2, Saturday against the Knights at Schenectady High.

Asked what Lansingburgh coach Al McNall instructed the Knights to do against Schalmont, senior two-way star Tyrone Nichols said, "Coach told us we have to stop Vince Gallo. That is what we've got to do."